Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota
Above the national median for unemployment — and 18.7× the rate of the healthiest U.S. county (Loving County, TX — 0%).
Main Findings
Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota ranks 2,357th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. Lake of the Woods sits near the national median across major distress indicators.
- 2,357th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — Second-least distressed fifth, 48th in Minnesota.
- 6% of the labor force is unemployed (U.S. median 4%). Unemployment at the 92nd percentile nationally.
- Transfer-income dependency at 30% — national median 27%, ranked at the 67th percentile.
- Debt Burden (housing basis) domain score 26 — weight 20.0% of the CDI composite.
- Default & Legal domain score 23 — weight 20.0% of the CDI composite.
Neighbors span three CDI distress fifths. The 23-point drop to Roseau County marks where the Minnesota distress corridor ends.
"Lake of the Woods County ranks in the second-least distressed fifth of U.S. counties. The state rank and domain mix give the county-level context."
"The CDI places this county in the second-least distressed fifth nationally. The rank still belongs in context with state position and the highest-scoring local domain."
The Indicators Behind Lake of the Woods County's CDI Score
Every number traces to a public source. Lake of the Woods County's value shown alongside MN's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.
| Indicator | Lake of the Woods | MN median | U.S. median | Pctile | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delinquency — domain score 9 · Rank 3,025 of 3,144 | |||||
| Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due | 3% | 3% | 5% | 10th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due | 3% | 3% | 5% | 13th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 | 10% | 16% | 23% | 5th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Default & Legal — domain score 23 · Rank 2,672 of 3,144 | |||||
| Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections | 11% | 12% | 23% | 7th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents | 106 | 132 | 126 | 39th | US Courts F-5A (2025) |
| Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 26 · Rank 2,572 of 3,144 | |||||
| Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income | 18% | 18% | 21% | 24th | HUD FMR × Census ACS (2024) |
| Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent | 14% | 19% | 18% | 28th | Census ACS 5-yr (2023) |
| Labor — domain score 92 · Rank 239 of 3,144 | |||||
| Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed | 6% | 4% | 4% | 92nd | BLS LAUS (Dec 2025) |
| Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 31 · Rank 2,315 of 3,144 | |||||
| Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line | 15% | 11% | 18% | 36th | Census SAIPE (2023) |
| Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability | 13% | 13% | 16% | 25th | Census ACS 5-yr (2023) |
| Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line | 10% | 10% | 14% | 24th | Census SAIPE (2023) |
| Transfer-income dependency Share of personal income from government transfers | 30% | 25% | 27% | 67th | BEA Regional Personal Income (2023) |
| Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage | 4% | 5% | 8% | 11th | Census ACS 5-yr (2023) |
Five-Domain Breakdown
The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.
Methodology
The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.
Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, Business Formation Statistics), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2023 to 2025 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.
For Press & Research
Everything you need to cite Lake of the Woods County data — in under 60 seconds.
Draft wire copy 156-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
BAUDETTE, Minn. — Lake of the Woods County ranks 2,357th among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.
The composite score of 36 out of 100 places Lake of the Woods in the second-least distressed fifth. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 2,356 counties rank more distressed. Within Minnesota, Lake of the Woods ranks 48th of 87 counties.
The index, which draws on 16 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, finds Lake of the Woods sitting near the national median across major distress indicators, with no single domain emerging as a clear driver.
"Lake of the Woods County ranks in the second-least distressed fifth of U.S. counties. The state rank and domain mix give the county-level context," said Ross Kilburn, founder of American Default Research.
Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.
Frequently Asked Questions
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